Burkina militants free Australian woman1:14

An Australian woman has been freed after she and her husband were kidnapped in Burkina Faso by al-Qaeda.

February 7th 2016

2 years ago

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FOREIGN Minister Julie Bishop has spoken to the Australian woman freed after 22 days as an al-Qaeda affiliated hostage and she has now turned her focus on getting her husband released.

Ms Bishop said she had spoken with Jocelyn Elliott — who alongside her husband had dedicated her life to a medical clinic to help Burkina Faso locals — and reported she was “well, she was relieved and she was very tired”.

An al-Qaeda affiliated group released Elliott, who was kidnapped with her doctor husband in Burkina Faso on January 15.

Niger’s President Mahamadou Issoufou presented Jocelyn Elliot at a news conference in Dosso on Saturday. He said authorities are intensifying their efforts to secure the release of her husband, Dr Ken Elliott.

The West Australian couple, both aged in their 80s, were abducted after attacks by suspected Islamic extremists in the Burkina Faso capital, Ouagadougou.

Jocelyn Elliott has been released while the Australian Government works to secure the safe release of her husband Dr Ken Elliott. Picture: Facebook.Source:Facebook

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull confirmed to The Insiders host Barrie Cassidy that Jocelyn had been released.

“Yes, that’s true, and we want to thank the government of Niger and the government of Burkina Faso where of course the Elliotts were living when they were kidnapped,” he said.

“We want to thank them for the work that they’re doing and we again prefer to say very little about this case publicly other than to say we obviously continue to cooperate with those governments and we thank them for their efforts. And we can confirm that our Foreign Minister Julie Bishop who’s been closely on top of this situation has been speaking with the Elliott family in Australia and spoke to Mrs Elliott just a little while ago.”

Turnbull chose not to comment on the release of her doctor husband to make sure the situation does not sour.

Dr Ken Elliott and his wife Jocelyn with their three children Judith, David and Steven before the family left Perth in 1972. Picture: Perth Daily NewsSource:Supplied

“We’re dealing with a difficult diplomatic situation and the Burkina Faso government is working very well on it and we’ll continue to work very closely with them,” he said.

The children of the Elliotts said they hope their mother’s release means their father will also soon be free.

“We are trusting that the moral and guiding principles of those who have released our mother will also be applied to our elderly father, who has served the community of Djibo and the Sahel for more than half his lifetime,” the couple’s family said in a statement.

“They are separated now but united in their desire to bring healing and hope to the people of Northern Burkina Faso and the surrounding regions.

“We respectfully request that they be allowed to continue their work together, providing essential surgical services.”

The group, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, said they would release the woman on Friday due to pressure and guidance from al-Qaeda leaders not to involve women in war.

The kidnapped couple have operated a 120-bed clinic in the town of Djibo near Burkina Faso’s border with Mali for more than 40 years.

They were abducted when al-Qaeda fighters raided a restaurant and hotel in Ouagadougou, and killed 30 people, including many foreigners.

According to an audio statement released on the Telegram channel of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the primary motive for kidnapping the couple was “an attempt to (gain) release of our captives who sit behind bars and suffer the pain of imprisonment, as well as being deprived of their basic rights”.